Irgandı Bridge () is an historical bridge in

Bursa Bursa () is a city in northwestern Turkey and the administrative center of Bursa Province. The fourth-most populous city in Turkey and second-most populous in the Marmara Region, Bursa is one of the industrial centers of the country. Most of ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. The bridge is over Gökdere, a tributary of

Nilüfer River The Nilufer or Niloufer River () is a List of rivers of Turkey, river in Bursa Province, Turkey. From its source near Uludağ, Mount Uludağ (the classical Mysian Olympus) and flowing past the city of Bursa, the river tends to the northwest along ...

at . It is between

Osmangazi Osmangazi is a municipality and district of Bursa Province, Turkey. Its area is 621 km2, and its population is 891,250 (2022). It is one of the central metropolitan districts of the city of Bursa, as well as the fourth largest overall muni ...

(northwest) and

Yıldırım Yıldırım is a Turkish word meaning "lightning" and may refer to: People Given name *Ali Yıldırım Koç (born 1967), Turkish businessman and member of the Koç family *Yıldırım Akbulut (1935–2021), Turkish politician *Yıldırım Aktun ...

(southeast), two second level municipalities of Greater Bursa

History

The bridge was commissioned by a wealthy merchant named Müslihiddin in 1442 during the reign of

Murat II Murad II (, ; June 1404 – 3 February 1451) was twice the sultan of the Ottoman Empire, from 1421 to 1444 and from 1446 to 1451. Early life Murad was born in June 1404 to Mehmed I, while the identity of his mother is disputed according to v ...

of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. Its architect was probably Architect Timurtaş. During the

1855 Bursa earthquake The 1855 Bursa earthquake occurred on 28 February, with an estimated magnitude of 7.02±0.64 A devastating precursor quake that took place in Mustafakemalpaşa, a town of Bursa Province, in Turkey caused severe destruction all over Bursa and othe ...

the bridge was partially damaged. During the

Turkish War of Independence , strength1 = May 1919: 35,000November 1920: 86,000Turkish General Staff, ''Türk İstiklal Harbinde Batı Cephesi'', Edition II, Part 2, Ankara 1999, p. 225August 1922: 271,000Celâl Erikan, Rıdvan Akın: ''Kurtuluş Savaşı tarih ...

Bursa was occupied by

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

. In 1922, the bridge was bombed by the retreating Greek army. It was closed to traffic. In 1949 the bridge was reconstructed by the municipality albeit with minor modifications. After 2004, following another restoration the bridge was opened to traffic.

Details

The bridge is a single arc bridge. Arch span is and the width is .Asso. Prof. Yılmaz Önge's essay
/ref> It is an example of a rare type of covered bridge which houses a bazaar. It has been claimed (incorrectly) locally that it is one of only four bridges in the world having shops. Other bridges with shops on them are

Ponte Vecchio The Ponte Vecchio (; "Old Bridge") is a medieval stone closed-spandrel segmental arch bridge over the Arno, in Florence, Italy. The only bridge in Florence spared from destruction during World War II, it is noted for the shops built along it; ...

and Ponte Rialto in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

; Osam Bridge in

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

;

Pulteney Bridge Pulteney Bridge is a bridge over the River Avon (Bristol), River Avon in Bath, Somerset, Bath, England. It was completed by 1774, and connected the city with the land of the Pulteney family which the family wished to develop. Designed by Rober ...

in Avon, High Bridge in Lincoln, and " Frome Bridge" in Frome in the United Kingdom; and

Krämerbrücke The Krämerbrücke (; Merchants' bridge) is a medieval arch bridge in the city of Erfurt, in Thuringia, central Germany, which is lined with half timbered, half-timbered shops and houses on both sides of a cobblestone street. It is one of the few ...

in Erfurt, Germany. In the original design there were thirty shops on the bridge. According to Ass. Prof Önge during the Ottoman times, the bridge was also used to check traffic between two neighborhoods of Bursa by closing during the nights.

References

External links

{{Bridges in Turkey Ottoman bridges in Turkey Bridges with buildings Buildings and structures in Bursa Bridges completed in the 15th century Buildings and structures completed in 1442 Transport infrastructure completed in the 1440s Transport in Bursa Ottoman architecture in Bursa